Titanic short shots
by GDeacur
Summary: Short stories in the Teen Titans universe.
1. First shot: A new dawn, life goes on

**A new dawn**

**(life goes on...)**

BEEP BEEP BEEP!

"Uggnngghhh…" groaned Robin, as he thrust his arm out and groped for the snooze button on his alarm clock. His fingers found the button and mashed it repeatedly, silencing the piercing wail. He rolled over in bed a few times, breathing heavily as he always did. After a minute of staring into nothing, he groggily sat up in the darkness of his room.

_I have to get going,_ he thought.

Robin flopped out of bed and yanked the string that turned on the light in his windowless basement apartment. He slowly pulled his clothing on, his eyes still adjusting to the light. He munched through some cereal, wondering why he felt so tired. Didn't he always get up at 7:30 on weekday mornings?

_I knew I was letting loose a little, but this is too much._

Shoving his books into his bag and popping on a coat, he went through the back door. He walked up the stairs in the landlord's backyard as he always did, bored with the thought of having to face yet _another_ day of school. Life was so… predictable of late.

"Oh, come on!" muttered Robin as he suddenly noticed the sky. It was still dark, a little while before dawn.

"What's going on…?"

But his active mind interrupted his speech, giving him the unwanted answer. It was fall. He set his clock forward instead of back, causing him to rise quite a bit earlier than he had intended.

"Why didn't I think of that last night?" asked Robin, imploring his own mind. And his mind answered back. _Better late then never._

Not wanting to go back inside, he began his usual half hour walk to school, deciding on getting to morning class early for a change. As he walked his seventeen year old self along the quiet sidewalk, he stared off into nothing while his mind went back through time.

---

"Officer, are you sure it was him?" asked an anxious Robin.

"Yup, we checked the remains. It was definitely him."

The Teen Titans were standing composedly, overlooking the huge valley of rubble. The entire underground complex had been blasted to kingdom come. Policemen and a few forensic investigators were scouring the crater of wreckage in one of the run down sectors of town.

"Let me take a look," said Cyborg. "I've been in enough bouts with Slade. My scanners can recognize his tissue."

"This way," said the policeman. He led Cyborg towards a small hole that had been excavated in the wreckage. Cyborg leaned over and scanned what was left within. The rest of the Titans looked on ominously. They were all thinking roughly the same thing, which Beast Boy then vocalized.

"He slipped up while making some high power explosives. Never thought it would end like this."

Robin kept staring at the rubble, as though hypnotized by it. How should he feel? Should he be happy? Sad? Apathetic? Cyborg walked back from the pit and stood in front of Robin. The two stared at each other seriously.

"It was him," said Cyborg. "He's gone."

---

"You're doing _what_?"

"I'm sorry Robin," said the mayor. He was a short, bald man who was keen of mind and mouth. He had also been a great mayor for Jump city, and a real ally to the Teen Titans throughout their days. Which is why Robin was so surprised to hear his words.

"We're pulling funding for Titans tower and shutting it down by the end of the month, Robin."

"But why?" asked Robin, like a child who wanted to know why his favourite toy had been taken away.

"You know why, Robin. The Teen Titans aren't needed anymore. Ever since Slade's demise, crime has dropped seventy percent. Our regular force can handle things now. Maintaining Titans Tower is _very_ expensive, Robin."

"But…" mumbled Robin, trailing off.

The mayor got up from his desk and came around to Robin. He spoke to Robin as one adult did to another, though Robin was only half his age.

"You know I wouldn't do this if it weren't in the best interests of the city, Robin. It just isn't wise use of resources to fund a costly superhero team that isn't needed."

Robin hung his head in his hands, reluctantly muttering acknowledgment of what the mayor said.

---

"You're going _where_?"

"I'm moving to Gotham, Robin. They need help over there." Cyborg's voice sounded more mechanical than usual as he carried an armful of equipment through the garage under the tower.

"Yeah but…"

"My mind is made up," interjected Cyborg. He threw the last of his belongings into the back of the T-car and closed the trunk with a resounding thud. Cyborg turned to face Robin, in what would be one of their last visual exchanges. But Robin couldn't return the gaze, and again he hung his head down and rubbed his temples.

"Aw, c'mon man! We're leaving on good terms, right?" asked Cyborg.

"Yeah, yeah... You know we are, but…"

"So cheer up man! Let's go have a parting pizza party, just us. Everything on me!"

Cyborg walked off to the Titans tower phone that he would use for the last time, whistling as he went.

_Damn, _thought Robin. _I knew this would happen. I knew we'd fall apart. First Raven follows that traveller, thinking she can learn new powers from her. Then Beast Boy up and leaves, following his nose. And now Cyborg…._

---

A gust of cold wind blew across his face, yanking him back to the present. He had almost reached one of Jump city's many high schools, where he was educated every day like any other high school student. The mayor was kind enough to give him a sufficient monthly allowance to help him pay the usual costs of living. He had to shop for food, study for tests, and worry about the future. Would he return to crime fighting? Would he leave Jump city? Or would he settle down and try to find stable work?

For all intents and purposes, he led a normal life.

"Robin! Come look!" exclaimed a happy voice from behind him. Two arms grabbed him firmly around the chest as he was flown up towards the sky.

_Almost_ normal. Starfire lived in her own place a few blocks away from his own, with a very… tolerant, understanding roommate. She attended the same school as him, and was even in the same grade in all classes. Except for English – she always had trouble with syntax.

"Starfire, what are you doing?" asked Robin through strained breath, becoming acquainted with the frigid breeze that a higher altitude afforded.

"I see you too have set the alarm clock forward," said Starfire with a slight giggle. At last, she stopped flying and held them both still in the air, two hundred meters above the ground.

"Look!" she exclaimed, exuberant as she usually was.

Robin stopped fidgeting around in her arms and looked out to the horizon. A beautiful sunrise was coming up, sending a creeping orange-red hue across the sky. Robin relaxed in her arms, and took in the sight for a few minutes.

"Were you thinking of things past, Robin?"

Robin took a deep breath.

"Yeah," he replied. "I know. I have to stop doing that."

They stayed afloat in silence as Robin though. How his life had changed! In only a few months, Slade was gone, the team was officially disbanded, and three of the people that he had spent much of his early teenage years had gone their own way. They were like family to him.

Thankfully, he still had his best friend with him. They still spent lots of time together, maturing as all normal people do throughout the unpredictable course of life.

It wasn't easy. Change is never easy.

_But what can you do?_

Life goes on.

**The end**


	2. Next shot: The life in the shell

**The life in the shell**

Beast Boy's head peered around the corner. He carefully looked through the Titans Tower main room from his vantage point within the elevator. Robin was staring unflinchingly at the computer monitor, making an uneven clicking sound as he typed away. Cyborg was stretched out on the couch while watching TV, ploughing through their many channels at an astounding rate.

_If I had cybernetic eyes, I could run through channels that fast too_, thought Beast Boy.

Returning his mind to the task at hand, Beast Boy exited the elevator and turned left. He calmly strutted towards the main hallway, holding a small object in his left hand. He took care to make sure that his less than composed body was between the object and the rest of the room, hiding his hand's precious contents from his other two circumstantial adversaries.

_Just a few more feet and I'll be into the hall. Then I can make a run for it!_

"Hey Beast Boy, watcha got there?" asked Cyborg, without even looking in Beast Boy's direction.

"AHHH!" cried Beast Boy, as he fumbled over from shock and fell flat against the floor. As quickly as he fell, he bounced back, momentarily juggling the fragile object in his hands. In other conditions, it might have been amusing. By the end of his routine, he was flat on his back, staring up at the ceiling and holding the object in both hands as though it were sacred. In seemingly an instant, Cyborg was beside him, staring at the thing in Beast Boy's hands.

"An egg?" asked Cyborg, truly confused.

Beast Boy picked himself up and dusted off his backside with one hand.

"Actually, it's a duck's egg," replied Beast Boy, defiantly. "And yes, I'm keeping it 'till it hatches."

"How did you…" Cyborg said, trailing off.

"I was flying around outside the city and found a few. Their parents had just been shot by some hunters. So I thought I'd at least give one of them a…"

"You know the rule on pets, Beast Boy," interrupted Robin's voice. How he could move from the computer station to the conversation without making the slightest noise was anyone's guess.

_He's special like that_, thought Cyborg as he sighed.

"C'mon Robin! This little guy or girl doesn't have a chance if I don't get it under a lamp soon!"

"You could incubate it other ways, BEAST Boy…" suggested Cyborg with a smirk.

"Yeah?" retorted Beast Boy, mildly angry. "Well I don't see you offering any…"

"And I can't grow feathers on my butt," said Cyborg, pointing directly at his rear end and mimicking a brooding position.

"You couldn't lose five hundred pounds either!"

Caught off guard by his reasonably logical comeback, Cyborg was ready to take it up a notch. Alas, it would never come to be.

"You can keep it Beast Boy," stated Robin, flatly. Beast Boy's eyes grew in anticipation. "Until it's fully grown. Then you're letting it back into the wild."

"Oh, thank you thank you thank you thank you…" shrieked Beast Boy. Cyborg's face was in shock. First, evenly matched by Beast Boy. Second, Robin allowing Beast Boy to keep a pet.

_I should go watch some more TV_, thought Cyborg.

"Cyborg," said Robin, "why don't you help him out? See if you can come up with a makeshift heat lamp. Or something to keep the egg warm with." Things couldn't get much weirder, so Cyborg took a deep breath and smacked his forehead with his palm.

"I'm on it," said Cyborg with a resigned tone. Beast Boy was still hyped in disbelief.

"Good," said Robin. Turning to Beast Boy, he continued, "But once it hatches, you have to keep it in your room. I don't want duck mess in the rest of the tower. Got it?"

"Of course!" replied Beast Boy, holding his free hand up to his head in a (possibly mock) salute.

A second or two passed, and Robin was back at his computer station. Cyborg found himself being tugged towards the hallway by a highly anticipant Beast Boy, and started thinking of things he could use to keep Beast Boy's latest project a success.

Robin typed away, checking over the design of his utility belt.

_I don't see any harm in him keeping it. I can't say I'd do it myself, though._

Robin zoomed in on a small section of the utility belt that looked overly cluttered.

Suddenly, the pixels got blurry. _Odd_, thought Robin. He reached his hand forward to adjust the contrast before his vision went entirely dark and he lost all control of his bodily functions. The next thing he heard was the sound of his whole body slumping against the floor.

His eyes dilated as they showed him things he didn't understand. He saw a control panel in a darkened room. It was so real, he could almost feel the dampness and coldness of the place. And there was dead silence. Next he saw his own hand, reaching out and opening the control panel. This revealed a myriad of switches, along with a schematic of the city's power grid. He felt himself looking at the schematic and thinking. Most of the switches were in flicked up, in the "ON" position. Robin then saw his hands turn the remaining switches likewise.

And all throughout, like one image transposed on another, he saw a tube. A large tube in a pitch black room, seven feet high and four feet in diameter. It was filled with a liquid of some sort. And floating in the liquid, a being in the form of a human, with tubes emanating from a myriad of places on its body.

Soon enough, both visions disappeared as quickly as they came. Robin found himself lying on the floor, staring up the ceiling and wondering what had just happened to him.


	3. Next shot: The warmth on the shell

******The warmth on the shell**

"CALCEY!" exclaimed a jubilant Starfire. She flew through the living room towards the small corner where Cyborg and Beast Boy set up their incubation system. The egg rested atop a thick, folded cloth in a small aquarium. A heat lamp was resting beside the aquarium with its head swivelled overtop the egg, casting light and heat on the center of attention. "How have you been? Are you feeling 'not bad' today? Is it… sufficiently roomy within your temporary home?"

"Calcey?" asked Raven aloud, trailing behind Starfire. She walked casually towards the incubator. "Did you name the egg or the duck?"

Beast Boy (in the form of a gorilla) and Cyborg were arm wrestling at the lunch table. They were locked in position, struggling against each others' might. Cyborg only used a fifth of his strength, and Beast Boy couldn't switch animals mid fight – those were the rules.

Noticing Starfire's interest in the egg, Beast Boy turned his attention towards Starfire and reverted to human form. This unexpected removal of resistance caused Cyborg to nearly slam his fist through the table. Beast Boy strutted towards his adopted, unborn pet, eager to discuss the subject with anyone willing to listen.

"That's okay, Raven. I haven't thought of a name for the little one yet, anyways."

"Oh man," said Cyborg, coming up towards the incubation corner, "don't suddenly leave off like that! I might smash the table in two next time."

"If only there were a room for exercising at full power!" said Raven sarcastically. "Oh, wait, we have one. It's called the exercise room." She levitated off the ground and sat down beside Starfire, who was gazing intently at the egg and smiling.

Cyborg muttered something and joined the other three in the corner. They all watched the egg silently for a moment, hoping to see signs of life. Perhaps they didn't know it, but the four of them shared that interest and anticipation in common.

On the opposite side of the room, Robin sat facing the computer. He tapped away on his keyboard, the gears in his head turning constantly like the earth itself. His search had yielded a few things so far, but not much. He assumed that the control panel he saw in his vision was to control the city's power grid, judging by the schematics that were present. Accordingly, he found the city's coal power plant's schematics through… dubious methods.

_How about that. The control panel is in the basement._

This being the extent of his progress, Robin sighed heavily and buried his face in his hands. Robin wasn't the most patient person. But of greater concern was that the memory of the vision was fading slowly, like footsteps in the sand disappearing amidst a sandstorm.

_And the other image…_

He hadn't thought much of it, mostly because he didn't know what to make of it. A figure floating in a tube? It seemed like something out of a TV show or a comic book.

_I've seen stranger things. Maybe I need to approach this from a different angle. Was it some kind of life form in development? That might explain the tubes and the liquid solution. _

Robin was tending towards thinking that said life from was the originator of his vision. That gave it telepathic powers. Robin also assumed that it must be reasonably nearby. He had no choice – if someone was contacting him from across the globe, he wouldn't find out about it anyways.

The whole hi tech contraption needed to be kept somewhere – this was obviously not situated at the local meaty meat corner store. But he had no way of finding the laboratory (he assumed) that housed this creature. He remembered that the laboratory was dark, almost like it had lost power.

_Wait a minute! It doesn't matter where it is. All I need to do is…_

---

"Sneak into the power plant and activate the power grid for the abandoned fringes of town?" asked Beast Boy. "Alright! When do we leave, fearless leader?"

Robin nervously looked both ways, hoping no one else was within audible range. Further complications were the last thing he needed. Leave it to Cyborg's all-hearing ears to get a hold of something, or for Starfire's endless stream of repeated "why?" to drag out the truth. In this case, the truth was nothing more than a wild goose chase.

"Yes," said Robin, trying to be quiet. "Tonight. We leave at eleven o'clock. I'll come to your room. Be ready."

"Got it. See ya then," said Beast Boy, walking away from their corner in the hall.

---

They stood in front of the control panel in the cold, dark, damp basement of the coal power plant. All it took was a few picked locks and some fast, fancy footwork for Robin to stay unnoticed by the rotating cameras and the few patrolling guards on duty. Beast Boy had it easy – once the side door they picked was open, he just transformed into a hummingbird and flew through the corridors to the basement.

_He did a good job memorizing the schematic I showed him,_ thought Robin.

Now, in the center of the plant, security was thinner. There was also no light as it was after hours. Thankfully, Robin always carried a small flashlight in his utility belt.

"Okay, make with the technological wizardry Robin."

Robin sighed heavily as he opened the door to the control panel in front of them. It was much like a large fuse box, and it looked just the way it did in his dream. There were 57 switches for the city's 57 zones. Four of them, corresponding to the abandoned areas of the city, were off.

Jump City had gone through a recession ten or twenty years ago. No one saw it coming, and expansion happened too quickly. Consequently, there were now numerous zones that consisted of nothing but abandoned buildings. Few new companies were interested in coming to Jump City due to the persistent crime problems it had. Therefore, the zones stayed abandoned. Wanting to save power whatever power possible, the electricity for those zones was cut.

_Not for tonight_, thought Robin. He assumed that this would eventually be noticed, possibly as early as tomorrow. Hence the reason he hoped that a few more hours of electricity was all it needed.

He reached out and flicked up the remaining switches.

No sooner had he done so, his vision became blurry once again. He dropped his flashlight and slumped onto the control panel. He heard Beast Boy's voice, but it was like someone was turning down the volume… only to turn it off entirely. Moreover, something else permeated Robin's ears.

Thumping. Endless, repetitive thumping.

He saw it again, but this time it was bright. It was the tube filled with a green liquid, and the being suspended within it. Its shape was that of a human, but its skin was hairy like that of a tarantula. And the hairs were each a tiny, miniscule thread of silver metal, giving the creature a kind of dull shine that came through the liquid. It had no mouth, no eyes, no ears, or anything distinguishable on its head. Its joints were small and free from the metallic hair that shrouded the rest of its body. It looked mechanical in nature, and yet, there was something living, something… organic about it. Maybe it was the way it squirmed slightly in its tube, like it was reaching out to see the world that it longed for.

Robin's view included other things. All around the tube, there were machines too complex to describe, and a source of lighting that produced no heat whatsoever. Robin wasn't sure how he knew this, but he did. He then knew where the thumping came from – it was the machines pumping streams of liquid into the creature. Robin also made out a small probe in the tube he hadn't noticed earlier. It seemed to float around the creature, making incisions and sending an arm within. It looked painful, but Robin felt none. Instead, it felt necessary.

Last, on the floor, Robin saw and smelled a rotting corpse. By some means, Robin felt the age and wisdom that it once had.

"What's wrong?" asked Beast Boy. Robin said nothing and slowly rose to his feet.


	4. Next shot: The emergence from the shell

**The emergence from the shell**

The sea – it was comprised of a seemingly endless body of water that stretched off in every direction away from land. Its waves lapped the shore gently as the sun rose, warming the cold sky with a deep orange that was creeping up from the horizon. Another day was starting – most of Jump City's residents would soon wake up and head to work, to school, or do whatever else they had planned for the day.

_Most_ people.

Again, Robin sat in the corner of the Titans Tower main room, holding the silence at bay with the sound of keystrokes and mouse clicks. After hours of searching and hacking, Robin finally found what he was looking for. He stared at the profile in near disbelief, and read it over in his head.

_Mariemeia Barton. Born in 1932. Fast tracked through school and was given free admission to a local university. Graduated with outstanding achievement in Biology. Was employed at several scientific institutes where she earned money to go back to university. Got a PhD in Biotechnology. Released world renowned thesis's on cloning, telepathic communication and genetic engineering. Work history ended 1998. Married in 1954, husband Trowa Barton died in 1996._

Robin's eyes shifted downwards to a note in the medical section.

_Voluntarily submitted for a fertility test. Results indicated that she was infertile._

"Sounds like the kind of person to try their hand at creating life," said Robin aloud.

_Maybe she knew her time was coming, and she set up her lab someplace underground that would be out of reach so no one would interfere with the process. She just didn't foresee power being cut to whatever fringe section her lab was at._

He promptly closed his eyes and rubbed his forehead, realizing how far fetched and ridiculous this all seemed.

A noise in the distance started getting louder. Someone was stampeding through the hallways, and it sounded like five hundred pounds of metal were grating against the floor...

"This is it! C'mon Cyborg!" screamed Beast Boy, who was dragging Cyborg single-handedly towards the egg. "It's gonna hatch soon! I know it!"

Cyborg was obviously tired but seemed somewhat excited himself. Nonetheless, he asked, "What makes you so sure it's gonna be now, at six thirty in the morning?"

"I _know_, man. I'm an animal, remember?" Cyborg shook his head at that last comment, but nonetheless allowed himself to be placed near the egg with Beast Boy himself. Starfire and Raven both entered the room shortly thereafter, intrigued at what could be causing such commotion. Beast Boy excitedly told them about the imminent hatching, and both Starfire and Raven stood about the egg, watching closely.

"Beast Boy, are you sure…" said Raven. She was silenced by the sight of the egg jittering slightly. The four Titans stared on with renewed intensely.

In a less excited part of the room, Robin got up from his chair and yawned loudly. _I've got to go lie down for a while_, he thought.

And lie down he did, though it was sooner than he expected. His eyes went blank as he stumbled back over something. It would be the last time he was contacted by the being.

First, he heard a sucking sound. He then saw it with his own eyes; the green liquid was being drained from the tube. Then the front half of the tube slid down into the ground, causing a wave of steam emanating from the tube to cloud Robin's vision.

As it started to dissipate, Robin made out the form once again. Its body shape was humanoid, like the last time he saw it. But something was happening. A gross splitting sound filled Robin's ears as he saw something emerge from the form's head.

After what seemed like forever, the steam cleared, and the form stood in front of Robin. It was complete. Where a mouth should have been, there were cold grey, razor sharp mandibles. It opened its large, black eyes for the first time, and seemingly directed them towards Robin himself. The creature was indescribable – it had a kind of grotesque beauty, like a centipede scaling along a wall. It looked capable of fierce violence like a wild wolf, but at the same time, had an aura of gentleness like that of a lamb. It seemed intelligent beyond the eldest and wisest of humans, but appeared full of humility and curiosity like a child.

And Robin felt the message being sent. It was unmistakable.

_Thank you._

Robin's vision returned to normal. Four familiar faces looked down on him, with mild concern.

"You okay?" asked Cyborg. "Since when are you such a klutz?"

Robin ignored Cyborg entirely and slowly sat upright on the ground. The four Titans were on all sides of him, kneeling over. Robin looked around at their faces with a strange expression. His mind was a little foggy, which he assumed was one of the after effects of intense telepathic contact.

Right in front of him, Beast Boy was kneeling over, holding a newly hatched duckling in his hands. A sticky mucus covered its dark yellow feathers, and it made a faint quacking sound as it opened its orange bill.

They all sat still and silent as statues for a few seconds, while the duckling curiously twitched its head around, absorbing its surroundings.

"You took a good fall," said Beast Boy.

Robin shook his head and grunted like he was trying to shake off the morning haze.

"Tell me about it," replied Robin, looking in Beast Boy's direction.

As Beast Boy started to speak, Robin reached out and took the duckling from Beast Boy's hand. He held the fragile creature softly in his palm, and gently stroked its neck and back with his finger.

Everyone was awestruck.

"Uh, well," stammered a flabbergasted Beast Boy, "you sorta backtracked over the chair. Your feet went straight up into the air like you stepped on a banana peel…."

"No," interrupted Robin, as a warm smile came over his face. "I mean the hatching. Tell me about it."

**The end**


End file.
